Selected at random from a list of unknown artists, I almost turned Evangelista off when her voice appeared on the first song. A gently plucked electric guitar and subtle keyboard bassline that I was quite enjoying were suddenly ruined by a voice that instantly made me think of ladies wearing fruit hats. I struggled through it and by the end of the song I had gone from barely coping with her voice to barely noticing it. By the end of the second listen I had actively begun to enjoy it. Slightly hysterical, slightly world weary and slightly dramatic, her voice and lyrics are the point of this album with the instruments playing a supporting role. In order to effectively discuss Evangelista in terms of similar artists I would need to know more and I have to confess that I don’t own a lot of albums by female singers. So I’ll stick to what I know and say that there are elements of Tom Waits Gothic vaudeville, elements of PJ Harvey’s fraught soul and Kate Bush’s artiness (at least to my ears). The album is all fairly dark and fairly abstract and the lyrics all seem to be pretty personal, so its not really one to stick on at kids parties but if you’re contemplating murder while chain smoking cigarettes in a cheap motel room, this would be an awesome soundtrack. Oh I also have to thank her for inadvertently introducing me to Evangelista “Cyborg” Santos. Why can’t I have Cyborg as a middle name ?
Kim Monaghan
